DISTRIBUTION OF SHORTLEAF PINE. 



91 



inches in diameter breast liigli and 75 leet iu bciyht, clear of limb lor the lenf^tli of about .'55 feet. 

 In a number of trees from 120 to 125 rings were counted on the stump. Tlie wood produced on 

 tbes(^ bills is of a liglitor color, less resinous, and of a fine grain. Specimens of linisbed lumber 

 from sucb timber resemble somewhat that of the White I 'inc. The hard-wood trees, mostly 

 Spanish Oak and Post Oak, scattered beneath the pines, are scrubby and of no value for their 

 timlier. 



Along the railroad lines the forests have become exhausted for a distance of from 5 to 10 miles 

 on either side, and the timber from the virgin forests is conveyed to the mills on steam tramroads. 

 It appears that of late years about .5.50,000,000 to 500,000,000 feet, board measure, of pine timber 

 are sawn annually in Arkansas south of the Arkansas liiver. In this amount the Loblolly IMne 

 lumber is included, which is indiscriminately sawn and put with the Sliortleaf Pine on the market 

 as Arkansas Yellow Pine. The bulk of the product of the sawmills in this section is shipped by 

 rail to the markets of the Northwest. 



In the northern part of Texas, east of the prairie I'egion, from the lied liiver A'alley to 

 the northern border of the Longleaf Pine region (under latitude '.'>2° X.), exteuds an area of 

 oak, hickory, and Sliortleaf Pine uplands, stated in the agricultural report as covering 35,000 

 square miles. In the southern extent of this area the districts where the Sliortleaf Pine prevails 

 are popularly known as the "Pineries." North of the Sabine liiver, from Longview through Cass 

 and Bowie counties, the Shortleaf Pine forms compact forests over many hundreds of square miles. 

 Near Beviiis, in Cass County, where the pine forests were more closely investigated, the moderately 

 dense timber growth covers the undulating country down to the lowlands of the I'ed River in 

 Louisiana. The sandy gray loam forming the rather compact soil of the surface is underlaid 

 by laminated stiff clayey marls, which at the depth of about 4 feet become quite impervious 

 to water. I>Iackjack, Spanish Oak, and Post Oak of stunted growth are scattered beneath the 

 pine. The pine appears to be of slower growth ; trees of full size — that is, from 20 to 24 inches 

 in diameter — were found to have reached an age of from 195 to 210 years. The upper ])art of 

 the timber of such old trees is frequently affected by rot, a defect undoubtedly to be ascribed 

 to the cold, impervious subsoil. 



From 0,000 to 7,000 feet of merchantable timber are claimed as an average stand for these 

 timber lauds. Every tree above 10 inches in diameter at breast height is cut for the mills. After 

 the removal of the pine the hard woods gain rapidly in the rate of their growth, soon shading the 

 ground completely. Young pines are rarely seen in the natural openings, the seedlings being too 

 frequently destroyed by iire. In the clearings, where the original tree gTowth has been completely 

 removed and the pine takes quick possession of the ground, the second growth, if not killed 

 outright by the tires which again and again devour the surrounding tall weeds and broom grasses, 

 becomes too severely injured to be of any promise. 



Four trees, selected as representing fairly the average merchantable timber of the Shortleaf 

 Pine forests of northeastern Texas, showed the following record : 



Mvaaurementa of four trees. 



The forests of Shortleaf Pine near Longview, which was iu 18S0 the site of a most active lumber 

 industry, have been nearly exhausted, and with diminished sui)plies along the New Orleans and 

 Pacific Railway the business has greatly declined. The annual output of the 30 mills situateil 

 along this road, and its branch from Carthage to Panola, does not at present in the aggregate 

 exceed 70,000,000 feet, board measure. From the information obtained in 1892 it appears that in 

 1891-92, 200,000,000 feet, board measure, were handled in Texarkana, the product of the mills at 

 that place and immediate vicinity, and also that the shipmen-ts of the mills south of the Red 

 River in the same year reached about 105,000,000 feet, board measure. 



